During a job interview, it is usually not a good idea to enthusiastically volunteer that you enjoy a drink now and then. In Utah, it could soon be a requirement, at least for those seeking appointment to the state's Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission.

In the dry upper reaches of Utah's government, dominated by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the commission that oversees alcohol sales has a reputation — inside the state and beyond — for being less than friendly to the product, or at least unfamiliar with it.

A bill in the state Legislature, which advanced by a crucial committee vote Friday, would address that concern by requiring that at least two people on the five-member commission be drinkers.

Applicants for the two drinking slots — all commissioners are selected by the governor — would have to sign an affidavit to the effect that they had consumed alcohol for at least a year, though not continuously, before their appointment.

How much drinking is required? Fair question, but the answer is unclear. The original draft of the proposed bill, HB 193, used the phrase "regular consumers," but the bill's sponsor, Rep. Brian Doughty, D-Salt Lake City, said he deleted the word "regular" in an amendment after other legislators complained the word was hard to define.

Utah's liquor regulations are among the strictest in the nation, with state-owned retail stores and tight rules in bars. And as the commission's website makes clear, that is not about to change soon, no matter who sits, or sips, on the board.

"The purpose of control is to make liquor available to those adults who choose to drink responsibly — but not to promote the sale," the site says.